4X4 2001+ Lift Options Look Here First

This is a guide on the lift options for 2001+ 4x4 rangers. just thought it would be nice to have all the pics in one place. note: all pics were found through various forums , if the owner would not like their truck displayed in this thread please pm me and i will remove the pic. any way on to the options for lifts.

Here is the starting point for many of our trucks for comparison:

Option 1: T-bar crank 1-2 in (Free)
The basics: tighten the preload bolt on the Trosion bar, this causes the truck to ride higher in its suspension giving you a stiffer ride and 1-2 in of "lift"
The result:

Option 2: bigger tires 1-3 in ($300-$600)
The basics: the ranger has nice big wheel wells that can fit 33x10.5 or 32x11.5 inch tires on stock or 15x8in wheels, this is a nice cheap way to get more under axel clearance.
The result:

Option 3: 1in Body lift ($50-100)
The basics: a body lift uses blocks and longer body bolts to raise the body off the frame alowing for larger tires. this is an inexpensive way to get 32x11.5 tires to stop rubbing. this is a do it yourself lift, that uses 12 1 inch by 3 inch wide BL spacers availible on ebay also longer body bolts and new washers from the hardware store are required. no additional modifications are needed, but some interferance with the shift bezel may be encountered on manuals, this reguires slight clearancing with a dremal. more info can be found here.

The results:

Option 4: 3in PA Body lift ($200+)
The basics: a body lift uses blocks and longer body bolts to raise the body off the frame alowing for larger tires. bodylifts are cheap (200 ish) and alow 33x12.5 inch tires to be mounted with no rubbing. the problem with bodylifts is; 1. you need a shift extension for manuals and if you are lucky enough to have amanual transfercase the shifters hit the body floor and wont engage, and an extension is not made for this. 2. the bumpers are atached to the frame, leaving a 3in gap, brakets are included to fix this but they are flimsy to say the least. also tow hooks and hitches bring up a problem.
The results:

Option 5: Superlift 4in ($1600)
The basics: the superlift kit uses drop brakets to lower the suspension compnets giving you lift. this is a solid kit but has a few drawbacks; 1. Tbars remain at stock height and hang down. 2. it wears your front drive shaft, and the Superlift DS is $400 adding to the price of the kit. gives clearance for 33x12.5 inch tires.
The results:

Option 6: RCD 5.5in suspension lift ($2300)
The basics: this kit replaces the factory torsion bars with coil-over shocks, giving you clearance under the truck and clearance for 33x12.5 in tires with no rubbing but 35s will fit with slight rubbing i belive also this kit requires minor welding.
The result:

Option 7: Dixion brothers Racing LT 4x4 kit (3000+)
The basics: this is a long travel IFS kit that gives about 2.5 in of lift with 14 in of front travel (twice the stock travel) it is a dessert racing (prerunner) kit that retains the 4x4 and makes for an extremly capable truck. 33x12.5 tires work the best becuse of the extreme travel.
The result:

Option 8: Solid Axel Swap 5in to 10in ( 2000+ ish)
The basics: there is no kit for a Solid Axel Swap (SAS) but it involves replacing the front IFS with solid axel and grafting in suspension (usualy leaf or coil springs) and stering. fabrication skills are neccesary but the result is amazing, you basicaly build the truck to what you want. almost any tire size will fit it just depends on how it is built, 35 to 40 inch tires are the trend.
The result:

these are the main options for our rangers this is just to let you know what is avalible and each lift has its own pros and cons that if search can be answered for you. hope sombody finds this useful, and if any one has anything to add or edit or comment let me know, im no expert but was tired of 10 thousand posts on the same topic. ( as many others are ) oh and to the powers that be can we make this a sticky?

For example, your truck bill. You have 4inches of Superlift Suspension lift + 3 inches of PA body lift + 2inches additional ground clearance with 35inch tires, giving you a total of 9 inches of lift.

Me of the other hand, I'll be 5inches of RCD plus 1 inch of additional ground clearance through my 33inch BFGs, giving me 6 inches of lift. Question is, do I want to install this PA BL? And I can span the coilovers to give me additional lift. Not to mention the deaver leaf springs give 2.5 inches of lift in the rear as OEM application.

Good info! Might want to add that the RCD kit requires some minor welding. Gussets must be added to the shock towers because after installing the coilovers they are the sole source of support for the front suspension, and the stock shock towers are not engineered to withstand that load. Without the gussets, the weight of the truck could be enough to rip the shock towers right off the frame, with catastophic consequences from there.

For example, your truck bill. You have 4inches of Superlift Suspension lift + 3 inches of PA body lift + 2inches additional ground clearance with 35inch tires, giving you a total of 9 inches of lift.

Me of the other hand, I'll be 5inches of RCD plus 1 inch of additional ground clearance through my 33inch BFGs, giving me 6 inches of lift. Question is, do I want to install this PA BL? And I can span the coilovers to give me additional lift. Not to mention the deaver leaf springs give 2.5 inches of lift in the rear as OEM application.

You can tighten up the coilovers a little bit to give you probably up to ~6" of lift. It may make them ride a little harder though.

I dont have his cardomain link all those pics came from all over the place and are loaded on my cardomain. i think i got that picture from the snapshot forum just search superlift and i think the thread should come up.

would the rcd wrok on an 05 4x4 edge? on their website i think it goes up to 03, but was hoping that they just dont update often or sometihn

the concern would be your brake rotors. You should be 12" rotors. RCD kit was designed around the 11.28" rotor from approximately pre-March 2003. The kit also calls for wheels with a backspacing of 4". The stock alcoas on my Level II are 4.5" backspacing. I can still use them, but I plan to go with different wheels.

If I were an edge model I'd probably look into the camburg kits instead of the RCD, but since I'm not I went RCD.